Agyemang-Badu says under-fire Ghana coach Addo needs more time to ‘make a real difference’
The former Borussia Dortmund assistant manager who qualified the West Africans for the 2022 FIFA World Cup has faced a surge of criticism following the Black Stars' recent disappointing performances, with many calling for his dismissal and seeking a new coach to bring fresh inspiration.
Ghana’s recent 2-0 defeat to Sudan extended their winless streak to four, putting them on the brink of missing the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 20 years.
Amid widespread speculation, the Ghana Football Association has remained silent on Addo’s future. However, Agyemang-Badu continues to place his faith in the former international, confident he will soon turn things around.
"I’ve supported him since the World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria. He’s been consistently involved with the national team and knows the landscape very well," the former Udinese star told Flashscore in an exclusive interview.
"When he was appointed, I thought, ‘He’s one of us - let’s back him fully and provide all the support we can to build something of our own.'
"When the team was depleted before the game against Nigeria, he stepped in and took charge. Though he didn’t secure any wins, he managed to lead the country to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
“The World Cup performance wasn’t bad, even though we didn’t advance past the group stage.
"He was given a four-year contract to build a strong team for us. At this stage, it’s challenging for the coach alone - he needs everyone’s support.”
After leading Ghana to a 3-2 victory at the World Cup in Qatar, Addo set remarkable records. He became the first Ghanaian to both play for and coach the Black Stars at the tournament, as well as the first homegrown coach to secure a win on that stage.
After the four-time African champions were eliminated, Addo stepped down from his position to focus on his role as a talent coach with the Bundesliga giants.
Fifteen months later, on March 15, 2024, he was reappointed for a second stint, with Joseph Laumann, John Painstil, and Fatawu Dauda named as his assistants.
Agyemang-Badu further argues that dismissing Addo will not provide a lasting solution to the challenges facing the Ghana senior national team. Instead, he calls on all stakeholders to come together and work collaboratively to revive the Black Stars' declining fortunes.
He added: "Our players perform exceptionally well with their clubs, but when they come here, things become difficult.
"Building a national team is different from building a club team. From time to time, he’ll need our support because we’re all in this together. We can’t expect the technical crew to handle everything on their own.
"If we give him more time to settle in and understand the environment fully, I believe he can make a real difference for us. He’s admitted it hasn’t been easy, and the challenges have been significant.
"When you’ve changed five coaches in six years, it’s unlikely that coaching is the only issue. We need to uncover the root cause of what’s going wrong and understand why things aren’t working as expected.
"If you sack him and bring in another coach, and after two or three games things aren’t going well, what will we do - sack him again? Ghanaians need to stand behind him; we need to support the Black Stars and the GFA.
"He still has my full support, and we need to give him a chance to show what he can do for us."
Ghana will return to international football in November, aiming to qualify for the 2025 tournament in Morocco against all odds.
They will travel to Luanda to face Angola on November 15, followed by a home match against Niger Republic three days later.
The Black Stars currently sit in third place in Group F, with only two points from their four matches, trailing both Palancas Negras and Sudan.
